World’s Fastest Gamer – Details on Round 1 and 2 Announced

Since the announcement of the first round of McLaren’s World’s Fastest Gamer competition, things have gone fairly quiet regarding the event, although there were still some questions remaining to be answered. McLaren has now cleared up these questions and has shared some details on not only one but two rounds of #WFG.

World’s Fastest Gamer: rFactor 2

As we know, one of the rounds, to our surprise not the first one as some might have expected, will use rFactor 2. What we did not know however is that a “soon-to-be-unveiled race specification McLaren GT car” will be used. Of course, that statement is very vague. It could be a McLaren 650S GT3, which we can already drive in various sims, or a 570S GT4, more news on that later, or a new car all together – maybe a 720S GT3? We do not know whether the general public will receive the car as well. However, we do know that Zandvoort will be a public release and according to the schedule mentioned below, it will have to be ready by August 20.

Registration will open on August 1 and you will have to head over to Studio 397’s website to get yourself signed up.

A day later, all registered users will have the chance to prove themselves in time trials. The fastest 20 drivers will then progress to one of the four qualifying events.

rFactor 2 will host four qualifying events in total, featuring “a ‘Super Pole’ one-lap shoot-out for the top five qualifiers, followed by a 30-minute race”. Before each event, time trials will be held to determine the participating drivers. Here is the schedule for the events:

The driver with the most points at the end of the four events will qualify for the grand finale at the McLaren Technology Centre in December.

Bear in mind, the whole rFactor 2 round will only allow ONE driver to go to the grand finale. The other three will be determined through different games and the remaining six will be chosen by a “specialist panel”, as we know.

World’s Fastest Gamer: Forza Motorsport 6

The first round of #WFG will use Forza Motorsport 6. The events are hosted in association with CJ Wilson Racing, on whose website you will be able put your name in for participation. Registration opens on June 19. Again, the time trials,, the first one starts on July 3, will be held before the races but the races will be a little different compared to rFactor 2’s.

Each fixture will consist of two races of around 15 minutes’ length – the grid for race one will be established using qualifying times; the order for race two will be taken from the first race’s results. There will be standing starts in each race.

The races will be held according to the following schedule

The events are Xbox One only and the car of choice will be the McLaren 570S in a GT4 spec. However, you can view a preview above.

As with rFactor 2, this will only allow ONE driver to enter the grand finale, which is the one with the most points at the end of the five races.

McLaren Technology Group Executive Director Zak Brown shared his thoughts on the matter as well:

These qualifying rounds are exactly what World’s Fastest Gamer is all about: fast, frantic racing on some of the world’s greatest and most demanding racetracks. With these first two qualifiers, we’ve selected some of the most iconic and popular circuits on the racing calendar – venues where drivers love to race and fans love to spectate.

I’m convinced these opening rounds will provide our candidates with the perfect introduction to online racing against some of the fastest and toughest opponents in the world.

As with racing in the real world, the cream always rises to the top, and I’m certain the winners of these two qualifying rounds will be worthy competitors for the World’s Fastest Gamer finale.